My desk chair philosophy

[HighlyIrregular II]

Not mesh, even though my AC is underpowered and the current heat wave would kill a lesser man, because mighty as I am, I don't want a blood clot and mesh is known to be less comfortable, especially around the frame. I want the kind of quality that you can only get in a chair that they don't sell to individuals, like the Steelcase Amia, which they have at work so I got to try it.

Used on Ebay is an option for the quality chairs, but another requirement is that I want a head rest. Some head rests look like they prevent your head from going back and may even force your head too far forward. Without trying a head rest that looks too far forward I'm reluctant to buy a chair like that.

Also, I won't want old foam because older fire retardants are less healthy especially as the foam degrades. And the more likely the foam is to have been made in China, the worse. Some newer chairs don't have any fire retardants in the foam at all.

A chair with a high enough back, like many managers, executive, and gaming chairs, even with no explicit head rest, could let you rest your head. But Managers chairs are less likely to be proportioned right for safe upright sitting, with arm rests too far apart, inability to sit upright with back support, etc. Executive chairs are even worse. Gaming chairs I may look into more but I'm averse to their color schemes and their specialization.

My current plan is to check Ebay for one of the newer versions of the Steelcase Amia. I think the newer versions are styled differently from the 2010-ish versions - I have to confirm that. If the Ebay listings had photos of the Date of Manufacture labels that would help. They're super sturdy, with a 400 lb weight limit, but no head rest. Maybe the plastic on the back is sturdy enough that I can get a headrest separately and screw it into the plastic.

[HighlyIrregular II]

I packed up my defective new chair for a UPS return and I went to Staples to see what they have these days. I just wanted a working version of what I'm returning, under the manufacturer's warranty, but the retailer just used the word "return" so I'm not sure what they're doing. I'm taking a chance and hoping they refund me and don't replace it. I liked a $300 Beautyrest Duo-EX at Staples but it seemed cheaply made, like it wouldn't last, and under padded, unbecoming the $300 price. The seat looked extra large but it's only rated for 250 or 275 lbs. It's not on the Beautyrest website. They licenced out their name.

I ordered a used, late model Steelcase Amia for $450.00. More than a recliner.

[HighlyIrregular II]

I highly recommend a chair cylinder remover if you'll be buying a chair that you have to assemble. I think I'm done with office chair buying for a while but I'd kind of like to have a cylinder remover that I could loan out to people who want to return their chairs. Without one, I think the way I got out a cylinder several years ago was to lubricate it and make contraption to suspend the seat and hang weight on the cylinder while I rotated it with huge pliers (about 14") that I bought just for that. I gouged the cylinder pretty bad but firm enough rubber may have lessened the damage. I tried the technique again two days ago but without the weight and I used folded-over rubber gloves to prevent gouges (thick leather slips) and I was able to apply decent pressure with no slippage, but it didn't work, at least not easily enough for me at this point in my life. Luckily I was able to fit everything in the box with the cylinder attached to the seat. Was picked up by UPS today. I paid $14 for pick up service.